Why Storm Eowyn Highlights Value Of Windscreen Insurance
The heavy rains that brought floods to much of northern and central England in the new year certainly produced a lot of car insurance claims. The term ‘flooded carburettor’ took on a new meaning as many vehicles almost vanished beneath the floodwaters in places like south Manchester.
Indeed, one of the most alarming incidents in the whole storm concerned an old mill in Stockport, converted into flats, which was situated close to the overflowing River Tame.
While some residents had to be evacuated and an entrepreneur had his plans to open a gym in the basement ruined when his equipment was wrecked by the flood, the sight of the flooded car park and written off cars was a reminder that climate change was the biggest issue for motorists living there, not to mention their insurers.
The latest weather event has less to do with flooding than high winds, however. Storm Eowyn is the fifth named storm this winter season, but the red alert warning of a ‘danger to life’ due to the extremely high winds forecast for Northern Ireland and parts of Scotland is exceptional, the first for Ulster since Met Office storm naming began in 2011.
While most drivers will not suffer flooding, those with windscreen insurance cover may breathe rather more easily than those without. Given the warning, it makes sense for motorists in the red warning areas to stay at home, as might those covered by the wider orange warning across the northern half of Britain. But parked cars will still be at risk.
It is expected the 90-100 mph winds will bring down power lines and cause structural damage, which could include snapped branches and fallen trees. It is hard to imagine that every car that cannot be sheltered inside a garage will be safe, while even those that are may still be at risk if something large enough falls through the roof.
Storm Eowyn will also bring some potential floods, not least as it will start off by bringing snowfall that will subsequently melt, but while that may harm a few cars, many might already be badly damaged. Moreover, while vehicles on sufficiently high enough ground away from watercourses will be safe, that will not be the case for those exposed to the high winds.
Of course, it may be that some of those exposed to the stormiest weather will be well prepared, such as people living in some rural parts of Scotland that often get worse conditions than most of the UK. However, the warning areas will also cover cities such as Belfast, Glasgow and Edinburgh, where many residents rely on street parking.
It remains to be seen how much stormier our weather gets as a result of climate change. After all, the Great Storm of 1987, which weather forecaster Michael Fish had notoriously suggested the previous day was not going to be a hurricane, is now nearly four decades ago.
However, even a few red alerts of this kind for high winds could add an extra reason for motorists to take out windscreen insurance and ensure they are protected from the consequences of increasingly common severe weather.